My Story
Hello there! My name is Rachel and welcome to my blog!
I was born with congenital heart defects and pulmonary hypertension. I had open heart surgery when I was two months old to correct my heart and lung issues. Then one morning when I was one and a half, I was eating one of my favorite breakfasts, homemade waffles with peanut butter and honey on top, when my skin erupted in hives. My surprised parents called the doctor and I was referred to allergy testing. We learned that I had anaphylaxis, or fatal food allergies, to all forms of eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, and apple. Over the years, I have outgrown a few food allergies (sesame and apple) and gained a few new ones (raw carrots, cantaloupe, and snap peas), so there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I was also diagnosed with moderate-to-severe asthma and both seasonal and animal allergies.
Now I am fourteen years old, navigating through middle school (ugh). And although I still have my food allergies, asthma, and heart defects, I swim competitively year-round and enjoy being active here in the colorful state of Colorado.
Oh, and did I mention I LOVE to travel? Although traveling is probably one of the hardest parts of having food allergies (can I just say that some people are CLUELESS), there are millions out there who have it much worse than I, and for that I’m incredibly lucky. But it’s still definitely challenging, and that’s why I started this blog!
With this blog, I want to give allergy families the confidence and resources so that they too can experience the world as normally as possible. Plus, I want to share with the non-allergy community what allergies REALLY are and what it’s like to have them, especially from a kid's point of view. Imagine being in a foreign European or Asian big city, where you can’t speak the language and there are only small mom-and-pop restaurants here and there. I know, it’s terrifying! So join me as we share our stories and learn how to travel the world, food allergy style!